A promising new approach to treating colorectal cancer involves disarming the gene that drives self-renewal in the stem cells that are the root cause of disease, treatment resistance, and relapse. Colorectal cancer is the third leading cause of cancer-related death in the Western world.

“This is the first step toward clinically applying the principles of cancer stem cell biology to control cancer growth and advance the development of durable cures,” said principal investigator John Dick, PhD, of Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto, Canada. The findings were published in Nature Medicine (2013; doi:10.1038/nm.3418).

Scientists in Australia have grown the world’s first kidney from stem cells – a tiny organ which could eventually help to reduce the wait for transplants.

The breakthrough, published in the journal Nature Cell Biology, followed years of research and involved the transformation of human skin cells into an organoid – a functioning “mini-kidney” with a width of only a few millimetres.

Poor engraftment due to low cell doses restricts the usefulness of umbilical-cord-blood transplantation. Researchers hypothesized that engraftment would be improved by transplanting cord blood that was expanded ex vivo with mesenchymal stromal cells.

The study’s findings support the hypothesis that transplantation of mesenchymal-cell–expanded cord blood shortens the time to neutrophil and platelet recovery after transplantation in adults. The transition from family-member–derived mesenchymal cells to unrelated STRO-3+ mesenchymal cells significantly increased the clinical feasibility of our strategy without compromising cord-blood expansion.20 Whether the differences that we observed will hold up remains to be proven in direct head-to-head comparisons.

This is an amazing story about one young Autistic boy’s journey to recovery through the use of stem cells. Both inspirational and heart-warming, it is worth discovering the story of this brave young boy and his road to recovery.

As many moms know, choosing to nurse sometimes leaves you in a bind while out in public. Finding a comfortable, clean place to breastfeed – or even pump – can be an ordeal. Well, thanks to Mamava co-founder Sascha Mayer, nursing moms flying out of Burlington International Airport won’t have that issue.

The first of its kind, Mamava has installed a “Lactation Station” for traveling moms to have a quiet, comfortable space to nurse or pump. We love to see this type of innovation from a mom, for moms! For more information and to read the article on today.com, please click on the link below:

There are so many decisions you are faced with as an expectant parent that you may become overwhelmed. One decision that should be easy is choosing to bank your baby’s umbilical cord blood according to Duke Medicine. Pointing out that over 4,000 cord blood transplants are performed each year, Duke wants parents to know the power of your baby’s stem cells and their great potential for future treatment. What was your reason for storing your child’s cord blood?

While many of us now indulge in the deliciousness of veggies, we might not have been as fond of them as a child. If you now find yourself facing this struggle with your little ones, we found some great recipes from PopSugar Mom to help sneak in some veggies into meal times. Not only yummy, these recipes are perfects for the summer. Try them out and let us know if your little tykes approve!

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been used by researchers to restore vision for mice suffering from corneal defects of Mucopolysaccharidosis VII. As previously reported, other researchers have discovered that MSCs will play a major role in future clinical therapies using Regenerative Medicine. This new study is a great example of their powerful potential.

We are always on the lookout for healthy tips here at FamilyCord. We were happy to find FitPregnancy’s article on how you can keep thinking healthy for both you and the planet, even during pregnancy. Check it out and share with us any other tips you have for our expectant families!